Apple Doesn’t Make Videogames. But It’s the Hottest Player in Gaming.

Apple Inc. doesn’t make hot videogames such as “Fortnite,” or consoles such as the Xbox. But with little fanfare, Chief Executive Tim Cook has turned the maker of the iPhone into one of the world’s largest videogame companies.

The key is the App Store, its digital marketplace, where the company sells and distributes thousands of games by other companies and developers, from Epic Games Inc.’s “Fortnite” to Tencent Holdings Ltd. ’s “Honor of Kings”—and takes a 30% cut of sales. That explains a lot about the tech giant’s current battles with rivals.